
Rainbow Bridge - Build for the Future
Donation protected
Community, Family, and Friends,
I am stepping forward with some exciting news, and I need your help.
TL:DR - I’m launching a building initiative with the intention to advance creative building methods, create education opportunities, and build community. It’s so much bigger than me, will you help me get started?
For years I have been literally building towards my dharma, my life’s work. I am a builder by trade, and I’m particularly passionate about how building is an expression of our values, our community, and our relationship to the Earth and each other.
If you know me, you have likely heard me nerd out about Aircrete, domes, and all manners of alternative building technologies. I strongly believe that we have an amazing opportunity in our lifetime to implement new technologies paired with age-old building principles to:
-Address the sustainability issues we see in the building industry
-Find ways to make housing more affordable
-Build creatively in/with community
A few years back I received a training on how to build with Aircrete - a lightweight cement medium that is efficient, has great insulation, is fire and pest-proof, and is cost effective. I’m thrilled to say that after years of stirring up interest in these projects, I have finally landed my dream Aircrete gig, straight out of prayer.
THE JOB:
This fall and through the next year I am building three Aircrete Domes that will be used as Temezcales (sweat lodges) for an international gathering called the Moondance. The Moondance is an indigenous ceremony that originates from the Anahuac tradition of Central America. Today, there are many Moondances held across the globe. The Moondance we are building these lodges for brings out hundreds of women each year to gather in ceremony for 4 days+nights, and participate in a rite of passage, fasting, dancing through the night, and going through the purification ceremony of the temezcal (sweat lodge) at the beginning and end of every night after dancing all night long.
Learn more about the Moondance here: https://shimshaisusana.com/events/moondance
What blows me away is that this project is the culmination of the prayers of not only myself to do my own fulfilling work that is rooted in purpose and intention, but is the prayer of countless others to uplift the greater work that is being done on a collective level for all of the participants to know themselves and similarly come into their own unique alignment in their lives. In this way, it feels like an enormous blessing to have such an opportunity.
THE FUTURE:
My plan is to use the momentum of this project to create greater visibility for projects of this nature and generate future projects. One challenge I have faced is having a proof of concept for these alternative materials that are on the cutting edge of more sustainable building. While myself and others have witnessed and implemented these methods successfully first-hand, this project would allow me to document the process and share it widely as an educational resource for other builders who are seeking newer, more sustainable technologies.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
I am also developing and drafting designs for small Additional Dwelling Units (ADUs) / Dwellings using the medium of Aircrete. I see a great opportunity to create affordable dwellings with this technology. This type of building (Block Architecture / Arch-Architecture) could be used with other sustainable materials such as hempcrete or other natural fiber or earthen mediums as they become more available. I see Aircrete as a positive stepping stone to provide a means to advance the creativity of our building habits and further improve upon these methods.
EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY
Another aspect of the vision is to create educational opportunities for those seeking experience, as well as lift up and honor the skilled individuals within the community as teachers. The workshop model has given many untrained individuals the opportunity to have hands-on experience, while providing a community/networking environment for participants. This is a great value to the workshop leaders who also receive the participants’ contributions to their project.
I see a great opportunity here for the cross-pollination of different skills/trades that would be involved in finishing any build, by creating opportunities to bring in a variety of skilled tradesmen who could teach their unique piece to an audience who’s looking to advance in that area.
DOCUMENTATION & COLLABORATION
Part of the project includes documenting the process in order to bring the knowledge from building workshops back into the community. This educational aspect to the project will also allow me to foster a network of skilled teachers who I can collaborate with to organize educational experiences for the local community, while actively building actual projects in the process.
LONG-TERM VISION: COMMUNITY CENTER
A long-term goal is to create a center or school that is an epicenter for community and hands-on educational experiences that can be accomplished on-site as well as involve off-shoot projects or ‘field studies.’
In addition to offering programming for adults who are interested in skill-building and collaboration, the vision is to create opportunities for the upcoming youth / young adults in the community to access valuable hands-on experience in a fun and collaborative setting, while exploring real-life skills that can lead to successful careers.
At the core of this project is the intention to generate community in a way that utilizes and uplifts the many unique qualities and talents that our community members have to offer, honoring how together, we can build something that is immensely greater than the sum of all of our parts.
These are my needs to advance this work at the moment.
I need help in the form of financial support to:
-Invest in some critical tools for moving forward with these projects
-A trailer to protect the value that has been invested in my tools
-Afford continued education in the form of trainings and workshops to bring knowledge and education opportunities back into my community and enhance the quality of the work.
-Purchase a Camera + Computer to document and record educational content
I’m open at this time to start conversations with individuals who are:
- serious about collaborating in a project
- want to explore the idea of creating an education center as described above
- have questions about these forms of building
are running building workshops / natural building / permaculture centers that could benefit from having more visibility / content creation.
Please consider making a donation to this project today and reach out if you want to collaborate further.
With so much gratitude,
Taylor Eaton
Organizer

Taylor Eaton
Organizer
Eastsound, WA